A Chapter Of Revelation

I am just starting to read a 400+ page novel by John Grisham, which will take a while. Meanwhile, here is a reflection on a work by Poul Anderson. I have Anderson's story, "A Chapter of Revelation," in his collection, Dialogue With Darkness (New York, 1985). The printing history reveals that this story was first published in The Day The Sun Stood Still, edited by Lester del Rey. The attached cover illustration further discloses that this book was an anthology of three original novellas on the common theme of the Sun standing still.

Observations

(i) What an unusual theme for an anthology.

(ii) Anderson's story is in every way realistic apart from its single Sign or Miracle which, of necessity, is unexplained, unless we just say "Divine intervention." Whether there is no explanation or a supernatural explanation, in either case the story is a fantasy, not science fiction as it says on the cover, but its classification is immaterial. What does matter is the story's point, which is the same as that of the film Oh, God!, starring John Denver and George Burns.

(iii) I can and might reread the story and comment in detail. However, the main impact of a story like this is in it's readers' longer term memories of its point and that is the level of my current observations.

(iv) The story's point is that, even if an undeniable miracle definitely occurred, many people would learn neither awe nor humility but instead would use the miracle to further their own agendas. Thus:

a particular man, an ordinary guy, is somehow associated with the miracle;
maybe he is just this guy no different from anyone else or maybe he does have something to say that everyone else should heed;
but ignore that - while the spotlight of publicity is on him, pressurize him in every way to parrot whatever Message we want propagated!

My God!

Anderson might have created a protagonist able to articulate this point more clearly but maybe the fact that our hero does not know what to say is itself part of the point. Why should he have to say anything after everyone has seen the Sun stand still?

The story ends:

"'When will we see that we've always lived in a miracle?'" (p. 80)

A Chapter Of Revelation

I am reading or rereading short stories in Poul Anderson's collection Dialogue With Darkness (New York, 1985). The first story is "A Chapter Of Revelation." I have read this one before and it was a little depressing so I am not immediately about to reread it. However, the basic premise is straightforward and can be discussed simply as an idea without necessarily remembering the details of this particular story.

I am astonished to discover that the story was originally published in The Day The Sun Stood Still, three original science fiction novellas by Poul Anderson, Gordon R Dickson and Robert Silverberg, edited by Lester del Rey. So it seems that del Rey asked these three authors each to write a novella on the same premise? This has been done before, of course:

Four For The Future by Aldiss, Anderson, Blish and Harrison, edited by Harrison;
Three For Tomorrow by Silverberg, Zelazny and Blish, edited by Clarke.

But The Day The Sun Stood Still, as its title indicates, has a very specific and bizarre premise. In the Anderson story, the Sun, or rather the Earth, stands still after a lot of people have prayed that it will. No other explanation is given so I suppose that we should say that the astronomical miracle is supernatural in origin and that therefore the story is fantasy, not sf. However, apart from that one miracle, the rest of the story is narrated realistically. 

Anderson's story makes two serious points: (i) philosophical and scientific; (ii) moral and political.

(i) Might the Sun stand still if enough people prayed for this "sign"? Scientifically, we might reply, "Of course not. How could it? Why should it?" and I think that this answer is alright as far as it goes. However, it does not quite go all the way. The scientific approach is always to wait and see whether new data confirm or disconfirm our expectations. That many people have not all prayed for the same thing ever before. If they did pray for it and if it did then happen, then that would be a new datum to add to any existing body of evidence about the efficacy or otherwise of prayer. Scientists will not organize such a prayer campaign and it is unlikely that anyone else will either so the question does not become a practical one. However, we do not need to dogmatize about what would or would not happen in other circumstances.

(ii) This is the main point of the story. Even if there were such a sign, people would not change their ways. (This is where it gets depressing.) The media identify the central character as the originator of the prayer campaign although he is not even sure that it was he who had started it. They ask him for his Message. All that he needs to say is: "I have no Message but have we all not been given enough of a sign?" Even worse, interest groups lobby and pressurize him to present their message as the Message. Fortunately, he refuses to do this. But how presumptuous are they? The sign is forgotten. Instead, a man who is no different from any other is emphasized. And there is no real interest in what he has to say.

The story ends when another character asks:

"'When will we see that we've always lived in a miracle?'" (p. 80)